In Between
by Flavia Dragneel
Summary: It's all changed when a certain girl knocked on Hisashi Mitsui's door, a certain girl who once was Kaede Rukawa ever had a feeling for, a certain girl Haruko Akagi would never expect to show up between her and the Super Rookie. The old love reappeared in between the unrequited love story.


**Summary: **Hisashi Mitsui had spent the past two years living his life a hell as a troublesome teen. Nobody was around. The family member he used to have was now gone but it's all changed when a certain girl knocked on his door, a certain girl who once was Kaede Rukawa ever had a feeling for, a certain girl Haruko Akagi would never expect to show up.

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**In Between**

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_**Chapter 1**_

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It was already late when she arrived in the cozy house she left 5 years ago. The house was still the same as the last time she saw it. Nothing much had changed. She exhaled the breath she'd hold from the first time she open the gate.

"Okaeri, Miko-chan…" she whispered softly. She smiled halfheartedly with weary eyes.

She walked through the footpath between the green grasses. She dropped the big red suitcase and knocked on the door. She knocked the wooden door for several times but no one answered. She didn't dare to call out her brother's name. She didn't want to surprise her brother, she just wanted to her brother welcomed her openheartedly.

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Hisashi Mitsui was lying on his comfortable bed. After the gym incident this afternoon, now he'd realized that all he'd done for the past 2 years was totally wrong. Just because he lost the chance to play basketball due to his knee injury _temporarily_, didn't mean he had to be a troublemaker and a part of a gang. But that knee injury wasn't the only reason why he changed his path in life.

The other implication was his family. His parents, his sister… They all were gone when he needed them the most. For him, his parents were the worst people he ever known, while his sister… She was just an innocent.

Now, he had nothing to worry about anymore. He had left his previous life and started it over with a new beginning, a very new beginning. He already apologized to Akagi and Kogure, he already confessed his faults to Anzai-sensei, and he already declared that he, Hisashi Mitsui, had return to basketball.

He swore to himself, to God, to be a better person in life and to bring Shohoku to be the national championship winner and dominate the championship. However, this was his last chance before he left Shohoku and went to a university.

He couldn't be happier. Soon, he would join the daily practice with the team and everything would be back to normal.

_Knock knock._

Mitsui got up from his bed and wondered who would knock on his door this late? _Was it Akagi? _He stood up and walked downstairs to open the door. The only person who would come to his home was only Tetsuo and it was only an urgent matters. But he was sure that Tetsuo was home to take a rest after the gym incident. _Well, maybe one of the team would like to welcome me more._

His lips twitched upwards. He grinned. He never imagined that his team would be this kind to him. He reached out the doorknob and turned it, revealing the one standing on the other side of the door.

His bright smile faded away as he saw his guest, someone he would never expect to stand in his front door. His eyes went wide. His eyeballs trembled looking straight at the girl in front of him. He was certain that that time his heart stopped beating for some mini seconds.

"Mi-Miko…"

"Tadaima… Nii-san…"

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…

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No, he wasn't sleeping, not at all, he was wide awake, and this wasn't his imagination.

"Mi-Miko… Mikomi…"

"Tadaima, Nii-chan…"

That girl, that Mikomi girl, _his _little sister was standing in front of him and Mitsui still couldn't believe it. He lost his voice. He lost his words. There was no word could describe his feeling for seeing his sister again. He was happy, of course, that she was here to see him. But then he was sad that he couldn't make a time for her, even to make a call or send her a letter.

"Nii-chan…"

"Miko!"

In a rush, Mitsui hugged his sister tightly and he couldn't hold back his tears anymore. It might sound ridiculous to see Hisashi Mitsui cried twice in the same day but he didn't give a damn. He used to be a rascal but after all he was a human, a human who had been slumped in a wrong world.

"Mi-Mi… Ko… Mikomi…"

"I'm home, Nii-san…"

His big arms lingered on his sister's small figure. It was real, it wasn't a dream. For almost a year didn't see her, Mitsui knew his life would be a bit brighter, a bit better, even without a mother to welcome him and cook him his favorite meal, even without a father to tell him how to take a decision in life as a man.

Mitsui eventually let go his sister. Both of them were crying the happy tears and smiling to each other.

"C'mon, you'd better come in," Mitsui smiled sweetly to Mikomi and carried her suitcase.

For Mikomi, leaving USA, coming back to Japan, and seeing his brother again were the best choice. This was her last place she would come to. However, this was still her house, the house where she was born, the house where she grew up, and this guy, Mitsui was still his brother and she felt guilty to leave him when he needed his family the most.

"You know, I'm so happy to see you again, Miko-chan. I never expect you to come and… I'm sorry I never make a time to call you," Mitsui said as they sat on the sofa.

"No, it was my fault, Nii-chan. I-"

"_Iie iie_, don't start crying again, okay? I'm glad you're back. I thought you would never come back and see me anymore. You know, this brat is making so many bad things this year and I'm ashamed to face you, besides Mom would never permit me to do so. I never meet Dad but we still keep in touch. He's always talking about you and Mom, and wondering if we could be together for once again," Mitsui sad.

"It's only a dream, Nii-chan…" Mikomi said sadly.

"Hey, stop using that expression, Miko-chan. You should be happy for being home again even it's only me, we're still family. We can start a new life here, just you and me. I promise I'll protect you and I'll make you happy. Deal?"

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For Mitsui, for the first time in the past one year, he could sleep in peace with nice dreams even though he knew it might be impossible to come true. But really, seeing Mikomi in the house was making his day well. At least, he's not alone in that damn, cold, big house anymore.

It was training time in the gym when an excuse of red-haired devils a friend of his bubbled with his idiot mouth.

"_Yare yare_, Mit-chi… I never knew that you're such a playboy… Hiding a girl in your house and no one knew what you have done there…" The 'genius' Sakuragi Hanamichi grinned at the ex-MPV.

"What are you talking about?" Mitsui stopped his dribble in confuse.

"Hey, Hanamichi, Mitsui-san isn't someone like that. Just because he used to be jerk doesn't mean he's a playboy," Ryouta Miyagi showed up. He'd had bad memories with Mitsui back then but now they really made a good friend.

"You just don't know it, Ryou-chin. I saw him last night with a girl in his house when I passed his house. That girl seemed so sad and she brought a super big red suitcase and then, Mit-chi hugged her, then he let her in. Isn't that clear enough for you to realize it?"

"W-What? A… Girl? Seemed sad? A suitcase?" Ryouta couldn't believe it. He glared at Mitsui and anger started boiling his body. "Mitsui-san, I never imagine that you will do something like that! I know you have a troublesome teen life but that doesn't mean you get a girl pregnant with your child! You haven't even graduated from high school yet! And do you think you can get the money to your baby?! You bastard!"

Ryouta was about to launch a punch to Mitsui when the team manager stopped him midday.

"Ryouta, calm down…" Ayako stopped Ryota, knowing he would listen to her.

"How can I calm down, Aya-chan?! That bastard hasn't changed a bit!" Ryouta shrieked and all the attention in the gym turned to the playmaker of Shohoku.

Ryouta was about to punch Mitsui, again, but this time Akagi stopped him. The captain gave his point guard a smack in head. Mitsui only froze with jaw dropped. The whole gym stopped their training because they heard what Ryouta had just said. Mitsui had just got a girl pregnant?

"What was that for, Captain? He's worth it!" Ryouta.

"He's worth it or not is based on my decision, not yours," Akagi said then Ryouta keep quite. Akagi turned to see Mitsui. Akagi was ready to give Mitsui another smack, a much killed smack, if what Ryouta had said was true. "Is that true, Mitsui?"

The whole gym was in silence for seconds. Mitsui closed his eyes and his brows frowned. It's troublesome. That stupid 'genius' red-headed Sakuragi Hanamichi was really a big idiot and he would make him pay for it. _Oh really._

"Answer me, Mitsui," Akagi said.

"Ggggrrr…" Mitsui growled. He's truly a jerk, a troublemaker, a part of a gang, a rascal, a jerk, but he wouldn't do something like that. _"Hanamichi… I swear I'll kill you…"_

"So… It's true…" Akagi stepped forward to Mistui.

"Akagi, don't trust him! He didn't know anything and that's not true, not at all!" Mitsui shouted loudly.

"Heh, trying to dodge it, Mit-chi? A genius like me will never get mistaken," Sakuragi said with his usual 'genius' expression then he laughed.

"Akagi, you know me better than him, right? I will never do something like that!"

"That who's the girl?! How about the suitcase? You let her live in your house?! You don't even marry her!" Ryouta shouted.

"She's my sister! She's my little sister, okay?! She's just returned from USA and now she lives with me in my house!" Mitsui lost his temper. Everyone gasped listening to what Mitsui just said. The laugh of Hanamichi's immediately stopped.

"Your… Little sister you said?" Hanamichi blinked.

"Yeah, I have a little sister and she lives in USA, that's why you never see her, never know her. She just got back from USA last night and she's crying because we haven't met each other for over 2 years. From now on, she'll live with me and she doesn't get pregnant with my child! Even she's not my sister I will not do something dirty like that!" yes, Hisashi Mitsui was really pissed off and thanks to Sakuragi, the plan he'd made to keep her sister's homecoming secret was now failed.

"Yo-Your little sister… Is back?" Ayako was taken aback. Her eyes trembled, so did her body. She had her hand covered her mouth in surprise. She knew she didn't listen Mistui wrong.

"Yes, Ayako, she's back…" Mitsui stared straightly to Ayako and turned his head to face the Shohoku Super Rookie with sharp eyes meaningfully, "Mikomi is back."

Rukawa's eyes went wide as he met Mitsui's death glare and the ball he held slipped away from his hand. For the first time, the team saw Rukawa showed such emotion on his face. Surprise, shock, confuse, all in one face of his.

"R-Rukawa… _Daijoubuka_?" Kogure asked him but his junior didn't say a word.

"Aya-chan, you know her?" Ryouta asked.

"Y-Yes… She's my friend in Tomigaoka. We used to be in the same class but when we graduated from Tomigaoka, she left to USA. Since then, I never heard anything about her. When I came to Shohoku and heard about the MVP player, I was shocked that he got the Hisashi name. That time I realized that Mitsui-senpai is Mikomi's brother, not only from the same name, but also some similarities in their face. But still, I'm never brave enough to ask anything about Mikomi," Ayako couldn't hide the trembling in her voice.

She remembered very well in the first day she went to Shohoku as a new student. Before Mitsui turned to be an ass in the school, Ayako had watched the match and she saw Mitsui. She was first shocked, of course, but then… Everything changed. She didn't know what exactly made Mitsui became a troubled student. Some said it was because of his injury, some said it was because of his personal life and Ayako rang a bell about the other Hisashi who was a friend of hers had had a problem with her family. But she didn't expect the elder Hisashi would become a gangster.

"You're scared because I was a part of the gang and a troublesome guy. That's why you never ask me, don't you?" Mitsui asked.

Ayako didn't say anything, but she nodded. She was afraid because she knew it's not a good thing to face the old Hisashi Mitsui and she didn't want to get involved in any trouble. But she didn't stop thinking about the younger Hisashi everytime she saw Mitsui.

Mitsui turned to face Akagi, "We live in a different house, in different continent, it's because our parents went to a divorce. It's the biggest reason why I became an asshole back then, but now I wasn't the same Hisashi Mitsui. I've changed, to be a better person, especially when I have my sister around and I don't wanna let her down. I wanna be a good big brother for her."

Nobody said a word and Mitsui didn't need to be pitied. He didn't need any of it from anyone.

Then, his eyes locked to that red-haired big-mouthed idiot brat's. Some knuckled-sandwich would be just _fine._

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**A/N: It still goes on to the next chapter. I need to know how you think about this story. Every kind of review would be gladly appreciated :)**


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